Chest drainage systems are known in the medical industry and used to treat patients by enabling drainage of a patient's pleural space following a traumatic event to the patient's lungs, such as surgery or injury. These chest drainage systems typically include a chest tube that is inserted into a patient's pleural space and a canister to collect fluids that drain from the pleural space. These fluids may include gases (e.g., air), liquids (e.g., blood, empyema, etc.), as well as any tissue or other solids associated therewith.
Currently, the decision as to when the chest drain system should be removed from a patient is subjectively determined on a case by case basis based on each particular medical practitioner's prior experience and patient outcomes. This may result in patients being left on a chest drain system too long, or removed too soon. Leaving a patient on too long will result in increased lengths of hospital stays, which may have a variety of undesirable effects such as associated increased medical costs for both the patient and medical care facility, less capacity for new patients, and decreased patient satisfaction due to long stays, while prematurely removing a patient may result in complications that require further medical attention and possibly readmission to the medical care facility.